WO 00/38661 describes the use of inhibitors of the sodium-hydrogen exchanger for producing a medicament for preventing age-related organ dysfunction, age-related disorders and for prolonging life. In this case, inhibitors of the cellular sodium-hydrogen exchanger are described for the production of a medicament for preventing age-related functional disturbances and dysfunctional changes in organs of the body and for preventing age-related disorders and for prolonging life while preserving an improved quality of life. A typical representative of NHE inhibitors which is mentioned is cariporide and/or pharmaceutically suitable salts of said compound, for example the cariporide mesylate having the following formula:

In the following the term “cariporide” is to be understood as comprising the free base of cariporide and the pharmaceutically suitable salts of said compound including the cariporide mesylate.
Moreover, WO 00/38661 recorded the biological findings on normotensive healthy rats. ACE inhibitors, for example ramipril, have, in contrast to NHE inhibitors, no protective effect at all on the described pathological age-related organ changes in old normotensive rats. In addition, WO 00/38661 considers combination of NHE inhibitors with medicaments which lower blood pressure, such as with ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor antagonists etc., in order to utilize, in addition to the protective effect of NHE inhibitors against ageing, the possible benefit of a lowering effect on blood pressure by hypotensive agents. However, an increase in a life-prolonging effect or a protective effect on pathological age-related organ changes was not expected, or anticipated by these publications.
It has been known for some time that ramipril, having the formula
significantly prolongs the life span of spontaneously hypertensive rats which is shortened as a consequence of their hypertensive disorder.
In an aspect of the present invention, it is now shown that NHE inhibitors alone and in combination with ACE inhibitors likewise cause a significant life-prolonging effect and a protective effect on pathological age-related organ changes in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). To exclude that the ACE inhibitor ramipril has a lowering effect on blood pressure, ramipril was given in subthreshold dose, i.e., a dose which has no lowering effect on the blood pressure. There were moreover, in a surprising way, significantly more favorable age-protective effects on combination treatment with the NHE inhibitor cariporide and the ACE inhibitor ramipril. The combination treatment is significantly superior to the two individual products.